30 Acacia Tree Types (Wattle Tree): Identifying and Growing Fabaceae Shrubs

Acacia Tree Thorns (Growing Zones for Acacia Tree Where To Grow)

The Acacia Tree has developed several defense mechanisms over the centuries to survive in the most challenging of conditions.

Growing up in neighborhoods like the outback in Australia or the desert regions of Africa, this plant has had to create innovative ways to not succumb to the unforgiving environments or the relentless predators.

For starters, the leaflets (pinnate leaves) are a delicacy that animals such as giraffes,³ zebras, and elephants, flock to and consume hungrily.

Without any method of keeping these plant eaters at bay, an Acacia Tree would lose its leaves very quickly and die shortly after.

Several species have added thorns to their arsenal as a deterrent to animals and they work very well as a protective barrier. These thorns range in color and size, some being a mere 5 cm in length while on other species they grow as long as 12 cm; all of them have very sharp points.

Giraffes, unfortunately for the tree, are not overly bothered by the thorns as their long tongues can snake around these spiky protuberancies and their lips are like toughened leather.

But the thorns have other defensive methods in the form of ants.

(Image: blom3¹²)

Some of the thorns are actually grown as hollow receptacles and what fills that space is the oh-so-sweet nectar that ants adore. In return for the provision of food, and shelter on the tree, the ants attack any hungry herbivores en masse.

In this way, they are protecting their new home, and the Acacia Trees at the same time, a win-win symbiotic relationship.

If they do their job too well, however, and drive off all of the herbivores, the Acacia Tree stops producing the delicious nectar and the ants are forced to move on.

In their place, another type of ant moves into the now vacant homes but instead of being beneficial to the tree, they serve as a catalyst for boring beetles to assault the tree and devour it from the inside out.

It turns out that a little bit of something is better than a whole lot of nothing, and that even though the elephants and giraffes have the capacity to defoliate the tree, their presence is crucial to its well-being and survival.

Without them, there is no need for the tree to produce nectar, no attraction for the army of protective ants for the Acacias,² and no way to stop invasive pests from moving in and doing their worst.

Acacia Tree Leaves

Another protective measure that is actually more effective at protecting the leaves from giraffes are the leaves themselves.

Acacia Trees are not classed as dangerous trees yet they have the ability to pump a poisonous alkaloid into the leaves even while they are being eaten.

(Image: Hans¹³)

As the giraffe takes a mouthful and starts munching away contentedly, the Acacia Tree’s defense mechanism realizes that it is under threat and floods the leaves with this foul tasty substance.

After a few mouthfuls, the herbivore decides that the taste is not to its liking anymore and moves on in search of another Acacia Tree nearby.

By releasing this alkaloid into its leaves, other Acacia Trees become aware of the chemical as it travels through the air, and this triggers them to release it themselves.

When the giraffe, zebra, or elephant have arrived to have a second helping of leaves from another tree, they’re immediately deterred from taking even one bite, and reluctantly move on.

If the animals continue to come back despite all these defenses against being eaten, the way the Acacia Tree grows may be the last line of defense.

Rather than growing long and tall, it spreads out sideways so it has a wide canopy and a flat top. Basically what it is doing is forming a protective ring around the inner leaves, flowers, and branches.

Relentless leaf-eaters may be able to consume the outer leaves and twigs within reach, but at least the internal ones will be safe to enable this quite amazing tree to survive for another day.

Dwarf Acacia Trees and Acacia Shrubs

Acacia Shrubs and Dwarf Acacia Trees are very popular among gardeners, even more so than their taller counterparts. In recent years more and more of these diminutive shrubs have been making a big splash in landscapes across the United States.⁴

They are easy to incorporate into landscapes and the varieties, shapes, colors, and textures complement the ecosystem with its lush green foliage, regardless of whether they are grown in containers or interred in the ground.

A few impressive examples that are no more than 8 feet tall and are worth having in and around your home or in containers are

Ease of maintenance and their ability to tolerate cold and even frost, as well as withstand varied soil conditions, increases the appeal of this hardy and versatile shrub.

What Is the Best Method for Growing Acacias? Is It Growing Acacia Tree From a Seed, Growing an Acacia Tree From a Cutting, or Growing an Acacia Tree From a Seedling?

Keen gardeners are always looking out for their plants, searching for the best, fastest, and healthiest method to grow their plants of choice.

With Acacia Trees, growing from a seed, or a cutting, are considered to be the two preferred options.

Seeds can be purchased from garden centers, home depots, or even botanical gardens, but may not be true to the particular type of Acacia Tree you are looking for as they may be hybrids.

It is possible to forage for seeds in the woodland and collect them from underneath an Acacia Tree, but permission would be needed from the landowner.

Any seeds collected in this way would have to be examined for any insect infestations and then tested in water to see if they float or sink.

Those that sink are keepers, while the floaters are good for nothing and should be tossed out. Those that are left are the tough ones. Literally.

They are dark brown, shiny, and very hard. Achieving germination is a process in itself – and starts with roughing them up a bit and then giving them a hot soak.⁵

Scarification is a method used to score the surface of tough seeds artificially to enable germination. This naturally occurs in the wild from sudden freezing temperature changes or the actual process of an animal eating it and passing it intact through the other end.

To scarify a seed the surface has to be broken either with a hard object like a hammer, a file, or even a rough piece of sandpaper.

Once that has been done, immersion in a bowl of boiling water for 24 hours will further break down the hard outer shell and increase the chances of successful germination.

The final step is to spread the seeds out on a moistened cotton pad, seal them inside a plastic bag, and place them in a darkened cupboard for two weeks.

Check on them regularly until some of them have started to sprout.

Acacia Tree Seeds (Planting Tips for Acacia Tree)

Planting the seeds into a potting medium will determine their health during this growing stage so it has to be chosen carefully.

A seed starting mix can be purchased from a store or an even better homemade mixture could be made up from simple sawdust, compost, pine bark that has been shredded, and regular soil. The container needs adequate drainage holes and when the sprouted seeds are sewn into the potting mix they need to be gently covered, and then sparingly watered.

Here are a few more tips and tricks that will simplify the growing process after implantation to avoid future problems

• Applying an orchid fertilizer every 3-4 weeks will benefit the plant for the first 12 months.
• For acacias in areas that are prone to frost, grow them against a wall facing south to afford a little protection from the cold.
• Do not over prune them as they react badly.
• When pruning, only trim dead growths, not green leafy areas of your Acacia Tree.

Sweet Acacia Tree (Vachellia farnesiana): Acacia Tree Bark

The Sweet Acacia Tree is an unusual tree in that it is both deciduous and evergreen,⁹ depending purely on the location and the temperature range.

The whitish bark wrapped around the multiple trunk formations turns a slightly deeper shade of gray as the tree matures, sometimes growing as tall as 30 feet.

The seeds are encased in long seedpods that emerge after the golden puff-ball flowers disappear in March on this deciduous variant, taking the wonderful aroma with them.

With branches peppered with sharp thorns, animals are fearless in working around them to get at the seed pods, twigs, leaves, and flowers. They want to eat it all.

But they aren’t the only ones.

The Sweet Acacia Tree gets its name not from the seeds but from its flowers. They are a delicacy for us humans as well as for animals and are worth fighting off the mammalian competition to pluck them straight from the limb, give them a quick rinse through and eat them raw.

(Image: cultivar413¹⁴)

They are sweet to the taste, quite delicious, and worth standing in line behind a deer to get a second helping.

Italian and French chefs have taken to frying these edible flowers in a batter to create quite amazing dishes,¹¹ sprinkling them with sugar or drizzling them with honey. Frittelle de Acacia and Beignets d’Acacia have got to be tried if only for curiosities sake.

Related Reading: 232 Types of Flowers: How To Identify and Grow Flowers In Any Season

Companion Plants for Growing Acacia Tree

Companion planting is a skill gardeners often overlook. They often fail to realize that with a touch of planning their plants will flourish symbiotically with other plants where one protects and benefits the well-being of another merely by its presence, and gets something back in return.

For Acacia Trees, these friendly companions are more than worth planting close by to attract pollinators, ward off pests, and improve the quality of the soil.

Some of those crops worth considering are groundnuts, sorghum, sesame, millet, beans, cabbages, and flowers such as passionflowers that appreciate the same temperatures as Acacia Trees.

By their very presence, the nutrients in the soil will be improved, and birds and beneficial insects will fly in and prey on unwanted pests.

The Acacia Tree will reap the benefits of this collaboration, the ecosystem will remain healthy and thrive, and the need for fertilizers and fungicidal sprays will be unnecessary.

Acacia Tree Facts (30 Acacia Tree Types: Identifying and Growing Fabaceae Shrubs)

The relationship between ants and the Acacia Tree is simply amazing, one feeding and housing the other in exchange for protection.

(Image: Schipkeb¹⁵)

Equally, the tree’s ability to deter plant-eaters from defoliating it in one sitting by secreting a foul-tasting substance into the leaves is also impressive. And there are even more interesting facts about the Acacia Tree worth knowing.

• Acacia Trees are fast growing.
• Just like the Acai Tree, the life span is short compared to other trees, averaging between 20-30 years.
• There is an official holiday celebrated in Australia called ‘Wattle Day’ on September 1 every year.
• A black tannin pigment is extracted from the bark to make dyes.
• The Acacia lumber is used to make boomerangs.
• Perfumes are made under a distillation process from the fragrant flowers throughout Europe.
• Extracts from the leaves have been used to treat malaria.
• The sticky gum from the Acacia helps to relieve inflammation and skin irritation.⁸
• An effective treatment for coughs and sore throats
• Brewed as a liquid, the gum has been known to clean wounds eliminate and bacteria.

There is a multitude of uses for this popular tree for many different industries beyond just its aromatic and tasty flowers.

Acacia Wood vs Teak vs Oak (Quercus acutissima)

Famous for making boomerangs, lumber from an Acacia Tree is a durable hardwood that is water-resistant, and long-lasting. Both of these features mark the Acacia Tree’s wood as a favorite for making outdoor furniture and chopping boards that won’t warp or absorb water at the first signs of rain or the first drop of water.

Even when it does get wet, the inbuilt anti-bacterial properties make it a safe bet to use in kitchens whether dicing vegetables or filleting fish.

The advantage that teak has over acacia lumber is that it is even stronger and more durable – and lasts a lifetime. It is also pest resistant so no insects will be able to burrow into the center and consume the furniture from the inside.

When it comes down to popularity, the wood from an Oak Tree is renowned for being at the top of the tree, so to speak, and it’s normally the choice for constructing floors and cabinetry.

If the 3 kinds of wood wanted to compete to see who was the toughest, the Janka hardness scale would quickly determine who was the winner.

• Acacia lumber scores between 1700 to 2200.
• Teak scores between 1000 to 1155.
• Oakwood scores between 1290 to 1360.

The Janka Hardiness rating is calculated by how much force is required to embed a steel ball into the wood.

(Image: mariuszopole¹⁶)

The hue of acacia wood is darker than teak, but at the end of the day the pros and cons, and personal preference, will determine which one will be made into patio furniture or be housed as a bookshelf indoors.

Related Reading: Janka Wood Hardness Scale Chart: Full List of 113 Domestic & Foreign Species

There are some trees such as the Mesquite Tree,⁶ the Redwood Tree, the Babel, and the occasional tree with yellow flowers, that closely resemble the Acacia Tree but are not from the same genus.

The unique qualities of the Acacia Tree can be copied, but not perfected. And so as not to be duped into selecting a doppelganger, carefully study the 30 Acacia Tree types (identifying and growing Fabaceae shrubs) so you’ll soon know which flowers are safe to snack on.

Frequently Ask Questions About Acacia Tree